"And I really essentially kind of fell in love with the power of a university, in terms of its capacity to build a nation.” Prof Jan Thomas - Vice-Chancellor at Massey University and Chair of Universities New Zealand - talks to Prof Judyth Sachs about the pull to academia from vet science; resurfacing curiosity in undergraduates; shifts in the value of universities in the Global North; and how Māori culture and te reo (language) have shaped Jan's journey.